Mumbai: The Khandeshwar police in New Panvel is on the lookout for three people who hurled stones at a statue placed outside St George Church in New Panvel in the early hours of Saturday. The act was captured in a CCTV camera near the spot. An FIR has been registered against the three unknown people. ACP S.B. Suryavanshi said the statue was untouched.
According to the Khandeshwar police, the incident occurred at around 2 am on Saturday. The three people came on one bike and threw 2-3 stones at the statue near the church in Khandeshwar, around 40 km from Mumbai. Two of them had their faces covered with cloth. While the statue has not been damaged, the glass covering it broke. The accused then rode away on their bikes.
Father Justin Kallely, public relations officer from the Diocese of Kalyan, informed the press that the incident has been captured on a CCTV camera in the vicinity. The camera was facing the road and is located in the courtyard. “The accused were wearing masks. The accused have not been identified. The CCTV footage has been handed over to the police,” he said.
The incident came to light only at around 7.30 am when the priests noticed the damage. Fr Kallely said it was a planned attack, but they could not find the motive.
An FIR was registered under IPC’s Sections 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of '50) and 34 (common intention) against unknown persons.
